21. In regulation 38, after paragraph (2), insert—
“(3) The amendments made to these regulations by the Environmental Impact Assessment (Forestry) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 do not apply to projects where, before the commencement date—
(a)the proposer has applied in writing to the Department under regulation 6(1) for its opinion whether a project is a relevant project;
(b)the proposer has requested the Department to give its opinion under regulation 9(1) as to the scope and level of detail of the information to be contained in the environmental statement required for that project; or
(c)the environmental statement has been submitted under regulation 10(1).”.